Extension plumb rod



Patented June 17, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE EXTENSION PLUMIB R01) Lingham J. Bullivant, Zion, Ill.

Application June 30, 1939, Serial No. 282,025

11 Claims.

This invention relates in general to an adjustable marking and indicating implement to be used by carpenters, plasterers, masons, and others for accurately marking and indicating the lines for building walls, partitions, brickwork, and the like, particularly in the building trades, although it may have a more general use wherever applicable.

An important object of the invention is in the provision of an adjustable tool of this kind for accurately marking upon the ceiling in accordance with lines or marks upon the floor, and vice versa.

A further object of the invention is in the provision of an adjustable and angularly variable marking device which may be set at different inclinations to indicate or designate an inclined line for building and other purposes.

A still further object of the invention is in the provision of improved scribing or indicating means for marking a line upon the ceiling in accordance with a line or marking upon the floor.

A still further object of the invention is in the provision of means for actuating both small and larger angles of deviation from the vertical Fig. 4 is a sectional detail of the adjustable mounting; and

Fig. illustrates the use of the plumb rod for building an inclined structure.

In the building art it is frequently necessary to accurately line up and mark a line or point on the ceiling in accordance with a corresponding line or mark upon the floor or to place a mark on the floor in accordance with the corresponding mark upon the ceiling. In the same way it may also be desired to lay out or indicate an inclined structure between the floor and ceiling, or at inclination to either one, which it is difiicult to lay out or indicate except with a variety of drawing instruments and other tools now available. The present invention has for its main object to provide a tool or implement of this kind for? accomplishing these results quickly and eificiently.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, an upright support or frame H! has a slot .H extending downwardly from its upper end with inwardly extending tongues l2 at the opposite sides to form a guide for a slide bar i3 formed with grooves M to slidably engage the tongues I I. At the upper end of the slide bar i3 is a cross head I 5 with its outer edge at right angles to the direction of movement of the bar and having a scriber at one side comprising an undercut groove [6 in which a slide I7 is movable under the action of a spring 18 attached at one end to the slide and at the other end to the under side of the head l5 and tending to press the slide upwardly or beyond the end of the head I5. Carried by the slide is a pencil or scriber l8 held in place by a thumb-screw 20 or other suitable fastening device. When the scriber is in place on the slide II the spring I8 tends to move the pointed end of the scriber to engage the surface of the ceiling at the end of the cross head, and the scriber may be withdrawn from such engagement by a string or cord 2| attached to an eye 22 at the lower end of the slide, the'cord projecting downwardly to a point where it maybe easily engaged by a person operating the plumb rod.

Along the groove l I are graduations 23 relating to the position of the lower end of the bar 53 which indicate the height of the head or the extension of the slide. The slide bar may frictionally engage the guide in the frame member and if desired a clamp may be provided at the upper end of the member for adjustably holding the slide in any desired position. This may consist of a band 24 extending around the upper end of the frame member [El and outwardly at one side thereof with a threaded screw 25 extending through the band and engaging a plate 26 at the side of the member so that when the screw is tightened against the plate the slide bar l3 will be tightened in the frame member Ill.

A mechanics level 21 may be attached crossways of the frame member iii to assist in leveling the frame and bringing it to its true vertical position and a plumb bob 28 may be suspended by means of a string 29 from a support 39 near the upper end of the frame member which relates to graduations 3i near the plumb bob for accurately indicating the vertical and level position of the plumb rod and also slight angular variations therefrom so that the implement may be set in a vertical position and also at slight angular inclinations to the vertical. For horizontal leveling a mechanics level 21a may be placed lengthwise of the frame.

For further varying the inclination of the plumb rod, the lower end of the supporting member It is pivotally mounted in a foot-piece 39 upon a pivoting bar 32 which is secured to and movable with the member lil, rotating in opposite extensions 33 and $4 of the foot-piece 33, one of which has opposite graduations 35 froma central or neutral position as it refers to a pointer 35 carried by the pivot rod 32 and held in place thereon against a shoulder by a threaded nut 31. The foot-piece and the frame member are ordinarily not rotatably mounted and a clamping thumb-screw 38 may be threaded on the other end of the pivoting rod 3-2 for tightly binding the footpiece in place on the frame member between the opposite extensions 33 and 3% which are slightly yielding and thus also holding the foot-piece and frame member in any adjusted position when the thumb-screw is tightened.

Thus the inclination of the supporting frame ill may be varied and the variation maintained and indicated on the foot-piece for the purpose of inclining the plumb rod within the limits of its adjustment. An indicated use for this angular adjustment is shown in Fig. which represents the plumb rod as inclined between floor and ceiling for indicating the inclination of a wall or masonry structure 43 with respect thereto.

In order to accurately trace or reproduce a mark or pattern on the floor to the ceiling, or from the ceiling to the floor, the head l5 and the foot-piece 39 may be of the same width, or at least the scriber i9 is in line with the corresponding side or edge of the foot-piece so that when this edge of the foot-piece is moved along a mark or pattern on the floor the scriber may be used to make a corresponding mark or line upon the ceiling. If the plumb rod is in vertical position the mark on the ceiling will be directly over that on the floor. In the same or reverse manner a mark or outline on the ceiling may be traced on the floor, the marking on the floor being most conveniently made by means of a pencil at the side or edge of the foot-piece 39.

This structure is therefore adapted to be readily set up and extended between upper and lower limits such as the floor and ceiling of a room; to clamp the slide in any adjusted position; to indicate the level of the plumb rod by a mechanics level, by a plumb bob and by an angular indicator; to measure the height between the upper and lower contact surfaces, and to scribe or mark the ceiling at one edge of the head; and

to incline and record the inclination of the plumb rod as desired.

I claim:

1. An extension plumbv rod comprising a bottom frame member with a guide slot opening from the upper end thereof, a slide bar movable in the slot and having a cross head at the upper end, a scribing device at one side of the head having depending means for operating it, the cross head being of substantially the same width as the width of the bottom frame member, and vertical leveling .means, so that a line or mark on the ceiling may be followed at the end of the head and transferred to a floor at the corresponding edge of the frame member.

2. An extension plumb rod comprising a bottom frame member having means forming a guide at the upper portion thereof, a slide bar movable in the guide having a contact head at its upper end and a scribing device at one end of the head having controlling means depending therefrom to be actuated by an operator on the floor for marking a ceiling or other top surface engaged by the head in line with one side of the frame.

3. In an extension plumb rod, a lower frame member having a guide at its upper end, a slide bar movable in the guide having a head at the upper end thereof, a spring-pressed slide plate at one end of the head, a scribing device attached to the slide plate, and a cord attached to the slide plate for withdrawing the scribing member from a contacting position against the tension of its spring.

4. In an extension plumb rod, a lower frame member having a vertical guide at its upper end, a slide bar adjustable in the guide having a crosshead at its upper end, one edge of the head and a corresponding lower edge of the frame member being substantially in alignment, scribing means at the said corresponding edge of the head having an operating string extending adjacent the lower frame member and leveling means for insuring the vertical alignment of the frame member.

5. In an extension plumb rod, a lower frame member having a vertical guide at its upper end, a slide bar movable in the guide, means attached to the frame for vertically leveling it and the bar, a scribing means at the upper end of the slide bar operable from below, and additional means in connection with the frame member comprising a spring supported weight and a graduated scale for accurately measuring and indicating slight angular variations of the frame and rod from a vertical position.

6. In an extension plumb rod, a lower supporting frame having a guide at its upper end, a slide bar movable in the guide and having a crosshead at its upper end, and a foot-piece in which the supporting frame is pivoted, at least one vertical edge of the footpiece being movable into alignment with a corresponding vertical edge of the crosshead.

7. In an extension plumb rod, a lower frame member having a guide at its upper end, a slide rod adjustable in the guide having a contact head at its upper end, and a foot-piece at the bottom of the frame member having extensions at opposite sides of the member in which it is pivoted, and means in connection with the foot-piece and frame member for indicating angular inclinations of the member with respect to the foot-piece.

8. A structure in accordance with claim '7 in which the frame member is fixed to a rod pivoted in the foot-piece, the rod having a pointer at one end and the foot-piece having a graduated scale relating to the pointer for indicating angular variations of the frame member in the footpiece.

9. A structure in accordance with claim 7 in which the frame member is mounted upon a rod pivoted in opposite yielding extensions of the foot-piece, the rod and foot-piece having means for indicating angular adjustments of the frame member in the footepiece, and clamping means in connection with the rod for compressing the mounting extensions and thereby holding the frame member in any adjusted position in the foot-piece.

10. In an extension plumb rod, a lower frame member having a guide at its upper end, a slide bar movable in the guide, means attached to the frame member for vertically leveling it and the slide bar, additional means in connection with the frame member for accurately indicating slight deviations of the frame member and slide bar from an exactly vertical position, an angular adjusting means comprising a foot-piece in which the lower end of the guide member is pivotally mounted, with a pointer fixed to one part and movable over a scale in connection with the other part to indicate the angular variation of the frame member in the foot-piece.

11. In an extension plumb rod, a lower supvertical edge of the foot-piece being movable into alignment with a corresponding vertical edge of the cross head, and a scribing device on the said vertical edge of the cross head extensible at will beyond the end of the cross head for marking a ceiling or the like.

LINGHAM J. BULLIVANT. 

